Moving toward Sustainable Rice Production in Northwest Dominican Republic

Derek Sindler,Catherine Tucker,Xin Zhao,Pilar Useche

doi:10.4236/nr.2018.912029

Abstract

Pesticide runoff from the rice production area of Las Matas de Santa Cruz in NW Dominican Republic degrades biodiversity in the ecosystems of the Yaque del Norte River, Montecristi National Park, and Caribbean Sea. This degradation prompted the Dominican NGO AgroFrontera to develop a program for the creation of a new sustainable rice value chain, starting with the formation of a rice growers association in Las Matas. This project was to evaluate “organic” as a potential certification for the new growers association. The project found that while organic certification is years away, other barriers to a sustainable rice value chain exist: competition with US rice imports due to Dominican Republic-Central American Free Trade Agreement (DR-CAFTA), an informal labor system, and access to credit. Recommendations for the new growers association include: to lower the cost of production to compete with imports, to formalize the labor system, to mediate financing for rice producers, and to maintain balanced leverage across the value chain. A recommendation for future research is the resiliency of farmer institutions against internal corruption and in-fighting.

Highlights

The purpose of this study was to determine the feasibility of, and provide an outline for, organic certification by ArroEcoZ, a rice growers association, located in the area of Las Matas de Santa Cruz, Montecristi Province, the Dominican Republic (DR)
The Results section is primarily split into two categories: Certification for ArroEcoZ and Viability of Rice in NW DR
It was determined that inputs were sold for lower prices when producers paid for them in cash, and ArroEcoZ was limited in developing bulk purchasing programs to lower the cost of production

Summary

Introduction

The purpose of this study was to determine the feasibility of, and provide an outline for, organic certification by ArroEcoZ, a rice growers association, located in the area of Las Matas de Santa Cruz, Montecristi Province, the Dominican Republic (DR). AgroFrontera’s program with rice producers evolved from its work with local fishermen on the coast of the Montecristi Province, around Montecristi National Park, to create a more sustainable fishing system. AgroFrontera determined that a new program needed to be developed to create a more sustainable value chain that would encourage rice producers to use more ecologically sound practices that would be equitable for all the stakeholders in the value chain. Under the objective of a sustainable value chain, AgroFrontera developed a set of practices which reduces the need for synthetic inputs while maintaining rice yield. AgroFrontera works with over 185 rice farmers who use some of the practices

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion